The Reason
by MilitaryWife
Summary: Beth has been on her own for a while when she comes across a man who might just be the missing link to the family that she wasn't sure still existed.
1. Chapter 1

She hid.

It wasn't brave but it was necessary. The growls of several walkers alerted her to the possibility of another human being close. They had been walking by the house and something had gotten their attention outside which changed their course.

She took a deep breath and pulled back the bedroom curtain slightly. Being on the second level of the house Beth had the advantage of seeing everything going on below her. There were five walkers, maybe six. As Beth calculated an escape plan from the second story window she watched the stranger below. The walkers didn't scare him. One by one he put them down with a quick jab of his knife to the head. It had to be 100 degrees outside but he wore a long leather jacket. His beard was trimmed and he looked rested, not a common sight to see these days. As Beth watched him take down the last walker she held her breath. Would the stranger enter the house or would he pass by?

Beth stood frozen by the window. As she watched the stranger disappear around the corner of the house she had about 30 seconds to make her decision. She could escape out the second story window and take her chances trying to scale down the side of the house. She might fall and break her leg or arm. The stranger might not be alone and he could have other members of his group out there close. Going out the window could expose her. As she heard the front door creek open she made her decision. She moved back from the window and put herself in the back corner of the room and loaded a bolt into her crossbow.

Beth had been on the road for a while. She hadn't counted the days but she had seen the season change so she knew it had least been a few months. She pressed her hand to her head as she thought about all she had been through in the last couple of months. Her head hurt which was common for her most days. She supposed surviving a bullet to the head was lucky enough that she didn't have the right to complain about constant headaches.

She was alive and there was reason for that. She just had to figure out why. She had spent the winter healing in the hospital. After she felt better and was steady on her feet she knew she had to get out of there if she ever wanted to make a difference. Doctor Edwards and the rest of the people at the hospital had treated her well. She knew she could have stayed. Every time she walked down that hallway though she saw her family. The ones that against all odds had found her and came to save her. And she knew it was her own stupid actions trying to get back at Dawn that had cost them to loose her for a second time.

After Beth left the hospital she headed north. Her first instinct had been to head back to the farm house. This was the next world and going back to the farm house would be full of painful memories. She needed to move forward not backwards. If she was going to be apart of the next world she needed to step up. Washington, DC has been her goal. She remembered the spoon she had found that day back at the golf club. If there was any place on the continent that may have some answers she figured it would be there.

Beth stood her ground and didn't move an inch as she heard the stranger walking around on the main level of the house. There was a chance that he wouldn't come upstairs. She knew that chance was very small though. These days you had to look over every nook and cranny in any house you were in to find something useful. Most houses had been ransacked and all the good stuff was usually gone.

As she heard the stranger climb the stairs she knew it was only a matter of minutes before he entered the bedroom she was in. She put her finger on the trigger and waited. All he had to do was walk through that door and a bolt would be flying through the air into his chest and it would all be over for him. But is that who Beth was now? Should she talk to him first? Was there still good in the world? She had a decision to make and as the footsteps of the stranger lingered outside her door she was seconds away from making it.

 **Authors Notes: I haven't written fanfiction in a while. The chapters will be short to start but as I continue to write I hope they get longer. Thanks for taking the time to read!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Authors Notes: Who is the stranger in the leather jacket? We're about to find out! Enjoy!  
**

Jesus stood outside the closed bedroom door. He sifted through the pockets in his leather jacket and pulled out the few meager things he had managed to find while searching the house. In his hand he held two granola bars and a pack of matches. It wasn't his worst find but he had been hoping to do a lot better than that. The Hilltop was close by and he had hoped to be able to bring back a few things with him when he returned.

He put the items back in his pocket and put his hand on the doorknob. He doubted there would be anything of value behind that door but he knew he needed to check just in case. As he stepped through the door the last thing he expected to see was a young girl pointing a loaded crossbow at him.

"Stop right there!" the girl shouted and Jesus immediately stopped in his tracks and put his hands up.

"I mean you no harm." Jesus replied hoping the girl would believe that he was telling the truth. Jesus wasn't one to unnecessarily hurt another human. There was too much death and destruction these days. Every life was precious now.

"Give me your knife." the girl demanded. Again Jesus did what he was told. He had been in the next world long enough to know that even though the girl didn't look like much there was nothing to stop her from pulling the trigger and ending his life. He slowly unhooked the sheath from his belt buckle and placed it on the floor then slid it over to her. She caught it with her left foot and placed her boot on top of it.

Jesus stood back up and continued to keep his hands raised. He waited for a moment to see if the girl had anything else to say. Her blonde hair was matted to her head. He could tell by her clothes and appearance that she had been on the road for a while. He saw the scar on her forehead which he assumed had an interesting story that went along with it. He looked into her eyes and he could see the fear behind her confidence. She wasn't a killer. She didn't want to kill him. But he knew she would if she had to.

The girl remained quiet so he knew it was his chance to do what he did best. Talk. Jesus could talk his way out of anything. As a teenager he could always talk his way out of getting grounded no matter what stunt he had pulled. As he grew up he found a way with words when it came to women. He knew that just the right words would have them eating out of the palms of his hands and giving into whatever he desired. And in this next world he had learned that saying the right thing might just save his life and those around him.

He cleared his throat and spoke. "I'm Paul but my friends used to call me Jesus. Your pick."

Beth eyed the man in front of her. She could see why his friends used to call him Jesus. The long hair and beard did give him a slight resemblance. The verdict was still out on whether his personality traits matched the nickname. She decided to let him talk some more. It wasn't like she had any other place to be. And she didn't feel like she had reason enough to kill him just yet.

"You have no reason to trust me." Jesus revealed as he slowly lowered his hands to his side. If he was going to talk to her he wasn't going to talk to her as if he was a hostage. "You don't know me and I don't know you."

Beth shifted her weight and moved her arms hoisting the crossbow up again. Her arms were getting tired and she didn't know how much longer she could hold them up.

"I know you've been hurt before. I can see that from the scar on your forehead." Beth's head pounded at the mention of it. She kept her composure though and listened as Jesus continued. "You don't have to trust me but you could. I'm not a bad person. There's still good people left in this world. And I'm guessing since you didn't shoot me as soon as you saw me that you might just be one of those people."

Beth knew that she couldn't be on her own forever. In this world you needed people. As she mulled over the words he had just said Beth wondered if she could trust Jesus? Was what he was saying true? Was he a good person?

Her thoughts were interrupted by one more statement. "You're alive and there's a reason for that."

Beth almost dropped her crossbow after the words came out of his mouth. The words hit her straight in the heart. "What did you just say?" Beth asked making him repeat himself.

"You're alive and there's a reason for that." Jesus repeated. Maybe it was the exhaustion or the dehydration or the pounding headache or a combination of all three but Beth's arms let go of her crossbow against her will and her world faded to black.


	3. Chapter 3

"You're alive and there's a reason for that." As Jesus repeated the words for a second time he could tell that they deeply affected the girl in front of him. He had got to her and he could see that as she began to let her guard down. Within seconds he realized that she was not only emotionally letting her guard down but physically as well. As she started to sway unsteadily and the crossbow began to fall from her arms he rushed forward to catch her as she passed out.

Jesus gently picked up the girl lying in his arms. She couldn't have weighed much more than 80 pounds. He wasn't sure how she survived as long as she had. With the lack of food these days and her thin frame would not have been a good combination. He carried her over to the bed on the other side of the room and slowly laid her down on it. He picked up a blanket from the foot of the bed and covered her with it.

He quickly gathered the weapons and returned his sheath to his hip. He looked over the crossbow and was surprised at how heavy it was. He had no idea how a girl her size could have carried that let alone keep it up in the air and aimed it at him for a few minutes. She must have been stronger then she looked. He took the crossbow and placed it outside the door. While he wasn't too concerned about her getting out of the bed and getting to it before him he still wasn't about to take any chances.

As the sun started to set Jesus took out his pack of matches and lit a couple of candles he found on the nightstand. He wasn't sure how long the girl would be out but didn't plan on leaving her side and knew he'd need to see her if it was dark when she woke up. Jesus spotted a bottle of water that must have belonged to the girl over by the window. He picked it up and moved the arm chair over by the bed placing the water on the nightstand.

Jesus sat down. It was getting late and he was getting tired. He had no idea how long she would be out. It could be anywhere from a couple of minutes to a couple of days. As he got comfortable in the chair he stared at the young woman lying peacefully in the bed and wondered what her story entailed. How had she got the scar on her forehead? Who was she and where had she came from? Who had she loved and who had she lost in order to survive? He hoped she would trust him at least long enough to get her back to the Hilltop so she could see for herself that there were still some good people left in this world.

He stared at her for a while longer lost in his own thoughts when she started to stir. Her eye lids flickered and her body began to tense as she became aware of her surroundings. She started to sit up but must have been dizzy and immediately laid back down. He heard a frustrated sigh escape from her lips.

"What happened?" the young woman asked.

"You fainted and I caught you before you hit the floor. I picked you up and put you in the bed." The girl turned her head so she was looking right at him as he spoke.

She sighed again. He could have just left her there. He could have killed her or done something worse to her. "Why?" she asked. "Why would you do that for me? I could have killed you."

Jesus picked up the bottle of the water from the nightstand and handed it to her. "Here, drink some water." She sat up and took the bottle from his hand and looked at it for a moment before obliging and taking a sip.

"They say actions speak louder than words. I'm one of the good ones, well as good as you can be these days I suppose. Now I just need to prove it to you."

This made Beth wonder if maybe she could trust him. He hadn't done anything to her yet. And to be honest she was tired of being alone. She felt worn out and it would be nice to have some company. She had a few questions for him though before she would leave this room with him. "You have a group?" she asked.

"I belong to a small community called the Hilltop" Jesus started. "There's about sixty of us in total. We grow most of our own food and supply the rest from runs we take. We have fortified walls. We are able to keep the dead out easily. It's the living that you have to be most cautious of these days."

Beth could tell by the way Jesus talked about his community that he was proud of his people and what they had accomplished. It sounded nice but almost sounded to good to be true. She wasn't finished with her questions just yet. "How many walkers have you killed?"

"Walkers?" Jesus said. "Too many to count. Definitely more than 100." He thought he was making progress if she was still talking. Her body was a little less tense then when she had first woken up and she seemed to be relaxing as he talked.

"How many people have you killed?" Beth asked. This was the second most important question.

"I don't like killing. I've taken four lives." he answered. His eyes turned away from hers for a moment as images flashed through his head. Even if he had done it out of necessity it still didn't make it easier.

"One more question. Why'd you kill them?" Beth asked. This was the most important question of all. His answer would determine her decision on whether or not she should trust him.

"Because I had no other choice. I needed to protect myself and my group or they would have killed us." She nodded. She understood that. She didn't like killing either but she knew sometimes in this world it had to be done.

Jesus got up out of the chair and started to leave the room but turned as he got to the door. "I'm going to go rest in the bedroom next door. I secured the house from walkers when I came in earlier. We should be good for tonight. I'm going to leave for the Hilltop at dawn. You can either come with me or you can stay here. It's your choice."

"Don't you have any questions for me?" Beth asked surprised that he would invite her to come with him after not knowing her for that long.

"Just one." Jesus replied.

"What is it?" Beth asked.

"What's your name?" Jesus asked with a hint of a smile playing on his lips. He knew it seemed to easy for her that he didn't need to know more. He didn't know her story yet but he could already tell that she was a good person. Her story would come out later on.

"My name is Elizabeth Greene but my friends used to call me Beth." Beth replied copying his introduction from earlier. "Your pick."

Jesus chuckled. "Goodnight Beth. Get some rest." And with that Jesus walked out the door closing it behind him.

Beth half smiled. Maybe there was hope. Maybe just maybe she had came across one of the last good people left on earth whose name ironically happened to be Jesus.


	4. Chapter 4

Dawn came quicker then Beth had expected. Beth stretched trying to wake herself up. The bed she had slept in was one of the comfier ones which made it that much harder to get up. Before she had fallen back to sleep last night she took a few moments to make her decision on whether or not to take Jesus up on his offer of going back to the Hilltop with him. There really wasn't much to think about. Jesus already knew her location so even if she didn't go back with him it meant that she couldn't stay at the house. Beth was considering Jesus to be more of an ally then an enemy but as Rick had once said you never really know until you know.

Beth packed her bottle of water in her knapsack and put it on her back. It was light. She didn't have much more then a change of clothes and her journal. She scanned the room looking for her crossbow and for the first time realized it was missing. Where was it? She thought back to her last memory of having it and realized that she must have dropped it when she fainted. That meant Jesus must have it. Maybe this was a scam after all? He was probably gone crossbow and all.

Beth rushed down the stairs and into the kitchen running straight into Jesus' chest in the process.

"There you are." Jesus said as he took a step back and gave her a moment to compose herself. She looked surprised to have ran into him. "Looking for something?" he asked.

She nodded. Jesus took another step back and moved out of the way pointing towards the table. There sat her crossbow all loaded and ready to go. She walked to the table quickly picking it up. Having it in her hands made her feel safer and she felt incomplete without it.

"I've seen a lot of different weapons over the last couple of years but it's rare to come across a crossbow." Jesus commented. "You any good at it?"

Was she good at it? Of course she was. It was the best weapon for her. All you had to do was know how to aim. It prevented her from having to get too close in tricky situations. She had done her best to hold on to all of the bolts but occassionally one would be lost and she'd have to find some more. She looked at the crossbow again and fondly remembered the first time she had shot a crossbow, Daryl's crossbow. She missed the days of just her and him and her heart wanted nothing more to find him and her family again. She knew that was pretty unlikely but she hoped that wherever he was that he still had hope. "Yes." Beth finally replied. "I had a good teacher."

"Maybe you can tell me about it someday?" Jesus asked. He knew that to earn someone's trust you had to get them to open up. Get them to tell something about themselves. After being on her own he knew that might not be an easy task but he was going to give it his best shot.

"We'll see."

They exited the house and walked down the front steps. The sun was already hot overhead. Beth hoped they didn't have to far to walk so they could get in the shade before it became unbearable. She had no idea how Jesus could stand wearing that long leather jacket and knit hat.

They began their walk in silence with Beth following beside Jesus. She hadn't had a conversation with anyone since she had left the hospital a few months earlier. While on the road she had several occasions where she had seen living people from a distance but she never made herself known. You were never sure who to trust in this next world and she didn't want to take the chance. But here she was taking a chance. She hadn't sought it out but she hoped she wouldn't regret it.

"Hungry?" Jesus asked breaking the silence. He sifted through his pockets pulling out two granola bars and handing one to Beth. "I'm guessing both of these were yours. I found them out in plain sight on the kitchen table when I arrived at the house. Do you mind if I eat the other?"

Food these days was something people would kill over. Asking for the second and last bit of food she owned was bold but since possession was nine-tenths of the law she supposed she didn't have much of a case anyways. "It's all yours." Beth offered.

Jesus tore apart the wrapping and took a bite. "Nothing beats two year old expired granola." Jesus teased as he took a second bite.

"You're complaining about two year old granola?" Beth said baffled. "Talk to me when you've eaten snake."

"You've eaten snake?" Jesus asked. This girl held more mysteries then he had guessed. Jesus had been blessed to have the security of the Hilltop from the beginning of the turn and really hadn't went without too often. Definitely he never had to eat snake to survive.

"A girls gotta do what a girls gotta do to survive." Beth simply replied. She continued walking. She liked this. Normal conversation. She hadn't realized how much she had missed it until she had it again. There was just something about Jesus which was different then a lot of people she had met. She had to try to stop herself from opening up too quickly. Even though he seemed nice she still didn't know him yet. It was too early to lay all her cards out on the table.

Jesus smiled as he thought about what he was going to say next. "I promise you that when we get back to the Hilltop and get you settled in I'll make you a plate of fresh scrambled eggs to make up for that snake you had to eat and for sharing the granola bar."

"You have eggs? Fresh eggs?" Beth asked in surprise.

"We sure do. We raise livestock and have a few chickens who lay." he answered.

"I haven't had eggs since the farm. I almost can't even remember what they taste like." Beth revealed. One card down she realized as she let some of her past slip out. She hoped he wouldn't ask too many questions.

"You were on a farm for a while?" Jesus asked.

She sighed. She had to answer something. "I was born in a small town just outside of Atlanta and grew up on a farm. My dad was the town's veterinarian and my brother, sister and I helped my parents out around the farm. We were able to stay for a while after the turn but eventually a herd of walkers came through and we had to run."

Jesus was happy that Beth had told him something about her past. She was starting to trust him. He usually didn't get to attached to people he had just met but there was something different about her. If he believed in God he would almost say she was an angel sent from heaven. Maybe there was a God if a girl like Beth could still exist.

"We're almost there. Now let me tell you what to expect when you walk through the gates."

 **Authors notes: This story is going to go at a slow pace. We will eventually see Team Family again and Daryl and Beth will definitely get a reunion. After last episode of TWD Jesus has made the list of one of my favorite characters (after Daryl and Beth of course). The moment he was "in" for me was when he offered to go into Negan's compound to help out Team Family even though it meant risking his life. He could've taken the out but he didn't. Looking forward to where they will take his story on TWD.**


	5. Chapter 5

"We're almost there. Now let me tell you what to expect when you walk through the gates."

Jesus spotted a large rock and motioned for Beth to follow. They were almost at the Hilltop and Jesus wanted to take a moment to explain how things worked there. He sat down on the rock and patted the spot beside him for Beth to sit down. There wasn't much room and if Beth sat down they'd be sitting directly beside each other with sides touching.

"I'll stand, thanks." Beth said not wanting to sit that close to Jesus. She also wanted to be on her guard in case any unfriendly dead came stumbling by.

Jesus reached up and tucked his hair behind his ears. Beth had noticed his long locks. It was rare to see someone's hair so trimmed and taken care of these days. His community must have had a barbor and lots of hair products to have a do like that. It was obvious he took pride in his appearance.

"So this is how it works." Jesus started. "When we arrive at the gate there will be two guards with spears. They may ask you to leave your crossbow outside but there is no way I'm letting that happen."

Beth nodded. There was no way she was entering without her weapon. "Thanks."

"Next I'll take you to the main house and that is where you will meet Gregory."

"Gregory?" Beth asked.

"He's the leader of the Hilltop. He's been around since the start and has helped make the place what it is."

"What's he like?" Beth questioned. She had seen her share of leaders before. There was Dawn who had used people to get ahead. There was the Governor who had charmed people into doing his dirty work before slaughtering them in the middle of the road when he was finished with them. She hoped that Gregory was more like Rick though Rick at times had his own fault as he was only human.

"He's interesting." Jesus smirked. There really wasn't any other word to explain Gregory. "He's harmless but sometimes he says things without thinking how people might take them."

"Give me an example." Beth asked. She wanted to know what she was up against.

"You're very pretty." Jesus admitted. Her eyes met his and locked and she thought she felt goosebumps creep up her arm. She definitely wasn't expecting him to say that or her body to react that way.

"That's what he'll say?" Beth asked realizing that Jesus was most likely refering to Gregory as she had after all asked him for an example.

Jesus shook his head. "No. That's what I say." Jesus surprised himself that he had admitted that out loud. He did have a way with words when it came to women but it had been a long time since he had told a girl he thought she was pretty. If he thought Beth was pretty with 10 days of dirt and sweat on her he had no idea if he'd be prepared to see her all cleaned up. He pushed that thought out of his head for a moment.

"Oh."

Jesus decided it was time to get the conversation back on track. "Instead of saying you're pretty he might make a comment how you'd be a very welcome addition to the gene pool making you think we have some sort of baby making factory going on."

Beth thought that sounded creepy but wasn't going to leave the statement unquestioned. "And do you have a baby making factory at the Hilltop?"

"While babies are the future we do not have women getting pregnant without their wanting to. We have several small children and one woman who is currently in her third trimester."

Flashes of Lori ran through Beth's mind. Pregnancy scared her. It was dangerous in this world for both the mother and the child. But without children the world could not continue. To have a child was to have hope that someday this world could start over again without the dead and evil walking around.

"Anything else?" Beth asked.

"Accomodations." Jesus replied. He had been thinking where the best place to put Beth. He wanted her somewhere close. While the people in his community were good for the most part he knew that her beauty would not go unnoticed and he didn't want the few unattached makes to make a nuissance of theirselvese towards her. "You will stay in the main house for now until you feel settled. There are about 15 of us now that sleep there including myself and Gregory. There is a small space that you can make your own."

Beth nodded. She liked the idea of sleeping inside and having her own space. She was going to give this community a chance. It was time she started living again. And food to eat on a regular basis would be nice too.

Jesus stretched his legs and stood up. "You ready?" he asked as he stood beside her once again. Beth nodded and followed beside Jesus as he lead the way. She had more questions she wanted to ask him being the inquisitive person she was but decided to hold off for now.

After walking for about twenty more minutes Beth finally spotted what she believed to be the community Jesus referred to as "the Hilltop". Before her stood walls at twelve feet high. As they walked towards the main gate she spotted two men with spears up top guarding the entrance. She tightened her grip on her crossbow a little tighter just in case. She wasn't ready to let her guard down completely because a stranger offered her a place to stay that sounded welcoming.

"Well what do we have here?" the man on the left side of the gate yelled down towards Jesus.

"I ran into her while I was out on a run." Jesus answered. "This is Beth and she's going to stay with us for a while."

"Looks like you had a very successful run." the man teased. "No supplies but you did bring back a pretty girl." Beth tensed. She knew it was most likely just men being men but she didn't know this man from up above or his intentions.

Jesus noticed Beth take a step back. He had just started to feel like he was earning her trust a bit and he wasn't going to let a stupid comment from one of his acquaintances in the community ruin that. He didn't think she'd run but he wasn't going to take a chance at it.

"Knock it off and let us in." Jesus replied not going along with the man's joke. Beth didn't know what type of power Jesus had in the community but the man did as he said and the gate started to open up.

Jesus turned so he was standing in front of Beth. "Inside those walls is a group of good people. But people are still people so if anyone is disrespectful in any way feel free to tell them off. I'd do it for you but I'm pretty sure since you've gotten this far on your own you are capable of taking care of yourself. Ok?"

A small smile played on Beth's lips. Most people saw her and thought she was someone who needed to be taken care of. It seemed like Jesus saw her differently. She'd be lying if she said she didn't like that feeling of meeting someone and not having to prove her worth. She supposed surviving on her own for so long must have been proof enough. "Ok."

Jesus turned and they walked through the gate together.

 **Authors Notes: Thank you so much for the follows and reviews! Much appreciated! I must admit that when I started this story I had no idea that Jesus/Beth would have any more then a platonic interaction but there might be something growing there. I will have to see where the story takes us.**


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